Fruit
In one of the ministry magazines that we get each month, there has been a feature article for elementary school children on the fruit of the spirit. For an entire month, every day this girl is practicing one of the fruit of the spirit. It is remarkable the change that it is making in her and in those around her. This whole series has started me thinking in terms of how we practice the fruit of the spirit. We can’t practice all of them at once, but we could do what this girl is doing.
Let’s refresh our memories with Galatians 5:22 and 23.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
What a list of the characteristics of the Lord. That is who we are if He dwells in us as born again believers. In our spirits is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. All of these are inside us. What we have to do is stir them up by exercising ourselves in each one.
I am challenging myself and each of you to do what this girl is doing. Let’s take the first fruit for the month of August and practice love, love in all situations we encounter. For one month, let’s practice love. And each month thereafter, let’s take up the next one until we have done all nine, and then we can start over again for the rest of our lives. I can assure you that each of us will be more “fruity” in a good way. We will taste deliciously good.
We know that the opposite of the fruit of the spirit man is the fruit of the fleshly, earthly, carnal, sensual man. Every one of us can easily yield to those fruit. The human being can automatically respond in a fleshly way, even after being born again. Fruit takes time to develop. It starts with the plant and then the bud and then the little fruit and then the ripe fruit. All of us have taken years to practice the fruit of the flesh. Now, it is time to practice the fruit of the spirit, controlled by the Holy Spirit Who lives inside us and makes us His temples.
I find it very interesting that the very next verse after 23 says this.
Amplified Bible
And those who belong to Christ Jesus (the Messiah) have crucified the flesh (the godless human nature) with its passions and appetites and desires. What does crucify mean? It means nailing it to the cross. How do we do that? We ask Jesus, the One Who was crucified for us, to help us say no to our flesh and yes to our spirits. We make the choice; we exercise our wills to allow the fruit of the Lord Jesus Christ to control our lives.
Jesus has won the battle for us against the flesh. It is only through yielding to Him that we personally will win the battle of our own flesh versus our spirits. Instead of reacting, we must act. Instead of reacting in anger, we must choose to act in love. Instead of reacting in strife, we must choose to act in peace. Instead of reacting to depression and discouragement, we must choose to act in joy. Instead of reacting to impatience, we must choose to act patiently. Instead of reacting in harshness, we must choose to act in gentleness. Instead of reacting in ugliness, we must choose to act in goodness. Instead of reacting in fear and unfaithfulness, we must choose to act in faith, full of faith. Instead of reacting in pride, we must choose to act in meekness. Instead of reacting in overindulgence, we must choose to act in temperance.
When we operate in the fruit of God’s Spirit, there is no other law on this earth that can come against us and win or succeed. We are operating in the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus when we choose the fruit of the Spirit of God (Who is in our spirit) as our way of living. Then the law of sin and death has no power over us.
In Galatians 5:17,18 in the Amplified Bible we see that when we are led by the Spirit of God, which means we will walk in the fruit of His Presence, displaying His characteristics, we are not subject to the law. What law? The law of the flesh, the law of sin and death.
For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the (Holy) Spirit, and [the desires of the] Spirit are opposed to the flesh (godless human nature); for these are antagonistic to each other [continually withstanding and in conflict with each other], so that you are not free but are prevented from doing what you desire to do.
But if you are guided (led) by the [Holy] Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.
There is only one law we are subject to: that is, the Law of Love, which is the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus. Within that Law of Love is all the fruit of the Spirit of God.
It’s time to allow the fruit to develop to maturity.
Let’s refresh our memories with Galatians 5:22 and 23.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
What a list of the characteristics of the Lord. That is who we are if He dwells in us as born again believers. In our spirits is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. All of these are inside us. What we have to do is stir them up by exercising ourselves in each one.
I am challenging myself and each of you to do what this girl is doing. Let’s take the first fruit for the month of August and practice love, love in all situations we encounter. For one month, let’s practice love. And each month thereafter, let’s take up the next one until we have done all nine, and then we can start over again for the rest of our lives. I can assure you that each of us will be more “fruity” in a good way. We will taste deliciously good.
We know that the opposite of the fruit of the spirit man is the fruit of the fleshly, earthly, carnal, sensual man. Every one of us can easily yield to those fruit. The human being can automatically respond in a fleshly way, even after being born again. Fruit takes time to develop. It starts with the plant and then the bud and then the little fruit and then the ripe fruit. All of us have taken years to practice the fruit of the flesh. Now, it is time to practice the fruit of the spirit, controlled by the Holy Spirit Who lives inside us and makes us His temples.
I find it very interesting that the very next verse after 23 says this.
Amplified Bible
And those who belong to Christ Jesus (the Messiah) have crucified the flesh (the godless human nature) with its passions and appetites and desires. What does crucify mean? It means nailing it to the cross. How do we do that? We ask Jesus, the One Who was crucified for us, to help us say no to our flesh and yes to our spirits. We make the choice; we exercise our wills to allow the fruit of the Lord Jesus Christ to control our lives.
Jesus has won the battle for us against the flesh. It is only through yielding to Him that we personally will win the battle of our own flesh versus our spirits. Instead of reacting, we must act. Instead of reacting in anger, we must choose to act in love. Instead of reacting in strife, we must choose to act in peace. Instead of reacting to depression and discouragement, we must choose to act in joy. Instead of reacting to impatience, we must choose to act patiently. Instead of reacting in harshness, we must choose to act in gentleness. Instead of reacting in ugliness, we must choose to act in goodness. Instead of reacting in fear and unfaithfulness, we must choose to act in faith, full of faith. Instead of reacting in pride, we must choose to act in meekness. Instead of reacting in overindulgence, we must choose to act in temperance.
When we operate in the fruit of God’s Spirit, there is no other law on this earth that can come against us and win or succeed. We are operating in the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus when we choose the fruit of the Spirit of God (Who is in our spirit) as our way of living. Then the law of sin and death has no power over us.
In Galatians 5:17,18 in the Amplified Bible we see that when we are led by the Spirit of God, which means we will walk in the fruit of His Presence, displaying His characteristics, we are not subject to the law. What law? The law of the flesh, the law of sin and death.
For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the (Holy) Spirit, and [the desires of the] Spirit are opposed to the flesh (godless human nature); for these are antagonistic to each other [continually withstanding and in conflict with each other], so that you are not free but are prevented from doing what you desire to do.
But if you are guided (led) by the [Holy] Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.
There is only one law we are subject to: that is, the Law of Love, which is the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus. Within that Law of Love is all the fruit of the Spirit of God.
It’s time to allow the fruit to develop to maturity.
posted by Rev. Kialeen Potterton @ 4:41 PM
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